Morocco, a Country Open to the World

H. E. Mrs. Zakia El Midaoui, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco, greets the guests of the reception on the occasion of the Throne Day.

July 30 was Throne Day, the 19th anniversary of the accession of Morocco’s King Mohammed VI to the throne. On this occasion, H. E. Mrs. Zakia El Midaoui, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco to Bulgaria, organized a reception at her residence in Sofia. Notwithstanding the holiday season, many people honoured the event, including representatives of the Corps Diplomatique, of the business, culture, art and education spheres. The stylish Moroccan ambience against the backdrop of European music, as well as the hospitality and cordiality of the hosts turned the evening into a feast of friendship.

In her celebratory address to the attendees, H. E. Mrs. Zakia El Midaoui said: “First of all, I would like to congratulate Bulgaria on the success of its Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the dynamic it has been able to instill in the priorities it has assigned to itself.

After she thanked cordially all those who had respected her invitation to share Morocco’s Throne Day, she underlined that “Morocco and Bulgaria have had very good relations for more than half a century and they continue to develop, to consolidate and to expand to other sectors and areas of common interest. Moreover, these relations have regained their strength in recent months thanks to a number of visits of Moroccan delegations enhancing a new partnership dynamics in the areas of protection of the rights of the Child and social protection.This momentum was made possible by the conclusion of a bilateral Convention to protect workers’ rights, which led, lately, the delegations of the Ministries of Labor of Morocco and Bulgaria to agree on the implementation modalities, in full compliance with the national laws and international commitments of both countries”.

“The Throne Day is also an opportunity for my country to celebrate our values of freedom, dignity, sharing, good neighborliness and mutual respect in a world of crisis, confrontation, fracture, fear and uncertainty”, H. E. Mrs. Zakia El Midaoui said. “ Our civilizations, our religions, our identities, our histories, our concerns and our challenges must not be used to serve regression, denial, division and fear of the other.”

Further on in her address she focused on the successes achieved in her country for the last 19 years:

“Morocco is constantly acting to make a structural transformation of its economy, aiming to strengthen its capacity, to create jobs and to improve its competitiveness and its integration, both at national, regional and international level as well as its diversity, attractiveness and added value.

In the context of the strategic priority outlined by His Majesty King Mohammed VI, in the field of foreign policy, Morocco plays an important role in conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding alongside the United Nations. Morocco maintains exemplary cooperation in political, cultural, spiritual and economic fields, with all continents and almost all countries. At the African level, this cooperation is materialized by concrete actions of solidarity such as south-south cooperation, the cancellation of the debt of the least developed African countries, the exemption of their customs duty products at the entry of the Moroccan market, the regularization of sub-Saharan citizens in irregular situation in Morocco.”

“Morocco, which is a model of a Muslim society open to the world, has made tolerance and living together an irreversible choice for over 12 centuries. As a result, the Kingdom is a hyphen between the African and European continents, a crossroads where diverse and different ethnic groups, cultures and languages can cohabitate”, underscored H. E. Mrs. Zakia El Midaoui.

Finally, she reminded that “Morocco and Bulgaria are both members of the International Organization of Francophonie, which is the voice of diversity and an area of sharing, partnership and universal values” and finished her address with the words: “Vive la Francophonie”.